Human Trafficking Statistics

Human trafficking statistics and information. Facts about human trafficking are collected from various public information sources, such as security agencies, criminal justice programs, research organizations and news stories.

In an article by the Korean Times, a 26 year old female stated that she was working as a prostitute after defecting from North Korea. The woman stated that she borrowed $6,000 from a broker to obtain the necessary documents to help her defect to South Korea. The woman was told that she would be working at a karaoke bar in order to repay the loan.

Once in South Korea, the woman had her passport taken and was forced to work in a brothel. The woman would earn $70 for each session she had with a customer.

Security agencies in Brazil registered 263 cases of human trafficking in the first half of 2013. The number of cases reported was 1,500 percent higher than the 17 human trafficking cases reported in the first half of 2012.

170 cases between January to June 2013 involved foreign nationals being trafficked into Brazil, while 90 cases were of domestic trafficking.

Of the international cases, 42 were for labor trafficking, 2 were of organ trafficking, and the rest were for sex trafficking.

64 of the domestic trafficking cases were for sex trafficking, 25 for labor trafficking and 1 case of illegal adoptions.

A report by the Home Office stated that the annual revenue that a human trafficker can earn by forcing a woman to work as a prostitute is $77,000 (£48,000).

Security officials in the UK estimate that the total market of human trafficking in the UK is worth $200 Million (£130 Million). If the entire social and economic costs from human trafficking were included, then the cost to the UK would be $1.4 Billion (£840 Million).

The United States Department of State reported that the operator of an organized child begging ring can make up to $40,000 a year in Shenzhen, China. An organized child begging ring involves children who are forced to beg for money in popular locations. Begging ring coordinators prefer to use disabled children in order to collect more money. The trafficker in charge of the ring collects the money from the child beggar. In Saudi Arabia, it was reported that an organized child begging ring can make up to $15,000 a month.

It has been reported that in India, doctors would be paid $200 in order to amputate a child’s limb for the purpose of begging.

From June 2011 to June 2013, security agencies in Peru identified and rescued around 2,000 people who were victims of human trafficking in the country. 42 percent of the victims identified were minors.

During the two year period, criminal sentences were handed out to 26 people.

Criminal justice officials state that one of the mining industry contributes to the human trafficking problem in Peru. In the mining town of La Rinconada on the border of Bolivia, an estimated 4,000 underage girls are forced to work as prostitutes.

A report in the New York Times stated that an 11 year old girl from the state of Jharkhand, India, was sold to a human trafficker for $24 (1,500 Indian Rupees).

According to the article, 100,000 girls are trafficked to Dehli and other areas from the state of Jharkhand. 67 percent of the girls who fall victim to human trafficking are bought and sold by someone that they know.